Each week, I’m ranking the biggest companies that trade on U.S. exchanges based on their size (market capitalization), momentum (total return over the past year), and recent news. Before we get to the rankings, a quick word on a major player.

It’s not easy being Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) these days. The stock has shed more than a fifth of its value, and investors continue to be concerned about the social networking giant’s ability to spruce up its reputation as data privacy fears intensify.

Thankfully for investors, there’s more to Facebook than its namesake site. It owns several platforms that are holding up considerably better than its flagship platform, and Facebook may be ready to cash in on the success of its sister projects. The New York Times reports that that Facebook plans to mesh its WhatsApp, Instagram, and Messenger platforms together. The three services will continue to run on their own, but the messaging infrastructure will be unified as early as next year.

With that in mind, let’s review this week’s updated list of 50 top large-cap stocks, kicking things off with the top 10.

This week’s top 10 stocks

Walmart (NYSE:WMT): $281.6 billion, down 9.1% over the past year.

The leading retail chain moved higher on the week after a couple of positive analyst moves. Capital One (NYSE:COF) also discussed its agreement to acquire the existing portfolio of Walmart’s co-branded and private-label credit card receivables. Capital One is taking on roughly $9 billion in receivables in the process, building on long-term credit card agreement that the two companies entered into over the summer.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) (down from 7): $234.9 billion, up 9.2%.

The pharmaceuticals giant is sliding down a few notches this week, after an analyst downgraded the stock. Navin Jacob at UBS is lowering his rating on Pfizer from “buy” to “neutral,” slashing his price target from $48.50 to $46. He thinks the stock’s valuation is less compelling than it was in his previously bullish update.

China’s leading online marketplace was treated to dueling analyst notes. Baird lowered its estimates for Alibaba on Tuesday, pointing to the deceleration of online sales in China given its slowing economy. Rob Sanderson at MKM Partners followed with a rosier outlook later in the week, arguing that margin pressure will reverse this year. He continues to tag Alibaba as his top pick among the megacap stocks. Both analysts do have bullish ratings on the stock, but their price targets are $67 apart.

Facebook (up from 8): $428.2 billion market cap, down 20.5%.

The social-networking leader will get a good chance to move during the week ahead. It reports fourth-quarter results on Wednesday, and at least one Wall Street pro is looking forward to the fresh financials. Doug Anmuth at J.P. Morgan put out a positive note on Facebook ahead of its report, seeing continuing strength at Instagram and easier comparisons for Facebook itself when it comes to time spent on the platform when pitted against the prior year’s shocking slowdown.

Visa (NYSE:V): $ 305.7 billion, up 10.7%.

It’s earnings season, and the world’s leading credit card company is expected to post another period of double-digit growth on both ends of its income statement on Wednesday. Analysts see Visa checking in with $5.4 billion in revenue for the quarter, 11% ahead of where it was a year earlier. They see profits growing even faster, with earnings per share rising 16% to $1.25. The cashless revolution continues to gain traction.

Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK-A): $498.8 billion, down 6%.

A Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary hoping to produce lithium for batteries has come under fire. A Financial Times report raised some doubts about the technological process in extracting lithium from California geothermal wells. Berkshire Hathaway’s market cap also dipped below $500 billion.

All eyes will be on Apple when it reports its fiscal first-quarter results on Tuesday. Apple has already confirmed that iPhone sales were sluggish during the holiday-containing quarter, and the stock continues to trade lower over the past year. Wall Street’s views are mixed ahead of the numbers. William Power at Baird is cautious, arguing that the consensus estimates may still be too high given the continuing challenges in China and even its home market. Katy Huberty at Morgan Stanley thinks the pessimism is running thick, giving Apple a lower bar to clear in impressing investors on Tuesday.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL): $762.4 billion, down 6.8%.

Stifel analyst Scott Devitt is lowering his price target on Alphabet from $1,400 to $1,300. He thinks Google’s parent company turned in a solid fourth quarter, but he sees revenue growth and margins in the year ahead coming in slightly below his earlier forecast. Several ad agencies have been lowering their global growth projections for 2019, and Devitt thinks the reduced spending will affect Alphabet’s core online business. He’s still bullish on Alphabet but more cautious about the stock’s near-term prospects for appreciation.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) (down from 1): $816.9 billion, up 21.2%.

Amazon is always looking for ways use high-tech to improve its efficiency, and its latest project is an autonomous delivery system. Amazon Scout is designed to get packages to its customers through autonomous devices that are about the size of a small cooler, rolling along sidewalks at a walking pace. They can navigate around pets, pedestrians, and anything else in their way. The first test of the high-tech delivery platform began this past week in a Snohomish County neighborhood in its home state of Washington.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) (up from 2): $822.8 billion, up 16.1%.

Mr. Softy is on top again. It’s overtaken Amazon in market cap since last week, and while its trailing return is slightly less, we continue to reward momentum here. On the downside, Bing suffered a brief hiccup in China, leaving the online search engine inaccessible earlier in the week.

Overall, the bias in prices is: Upwards.

Note: this chart shows extraordinary price action to the upside.

The projected upper bound is: 159.97.

The projected lower bound is: 138.21.

The projected closing price is: 149.09.

Candlesticks

A white body occurred (because prices closed higher than they opened).
During the past 10 bars, there have been 7 white candles and 3 black candles for a net of 4 white candles. During the past 50 bars, there have been 31 white candles and 19 black candles for a net of 12 white candles.

A rising window occurred (where the top of the previous shadow is below the bottom of the current shadow). This usually implies a continuation of a bullish trend.

Momentum Indicators

Momentum is a general term used to describe the speed at which prices move over a given time period. Generally, changes in momentum tend to lead to changes in prices. This expert shows the current values of four popular momentum indicators.

Stochastic Oscillator

One method of interpreting the Stochastic Oscillator is looking for overbought areas (above 80) and oversold areas (below 20). The Stochastic Oscillator is 37.8318. This is not an overbought or oversold reading. The last signal was a sell 6 period(s) ago.

Relative Strength Index (RSI)

The RSI shows overbought (above 70) and oversold (below 30) areas. The current value of the RSI is 59.30. This is not a topping or bottoming area. A buy or sell signal is generated when the RSI moves out of an overbought/oversold area. The last signal was a buy 42 period(s) ago.

Commodity Channel Index (CCI)

The CCI shows overbought (above 100) and oversold (below -100) areas. The current value of the CCI is 73. This is not a topping or bottoming area. The last signal was a sell 3 period(s) ago.

MACD

The Moving Average Convergence/Divergence indicator (MACD) gives signals when it crosses its 9 period signal line. The last signal was a buy 15 period(s) ago.

Rex Takasugi – TD Profile

FACEBOOK INC A closed up 3.180 at 149.010. Volume was 14% below average (neutral) and Bollinger Bands were 18% wider than normal.

Open High Low Close Volume___
147.480 149.830 146.540 149.010 22,250,954

Short-term traders should pay closer attention to buy/sell arrows while intermediate/long-term traders should place greater emphasis on the Bullish or Bearish trend reflected in the lower ribbon.

Summary

FACEBOOK INC A gapped up today (bullish) on normal volume. Possibility of a Runaway Gap which usually signifies a continuation of the trend. Four types of price gaps exist – Common, Breakaway, Runaway, and Exhaustion. Gaps acts as support/resistance.
FACEBOOK INC A is currently 10.9% below its 200-period moving average and is in an upward trend. Volatility is extremely low when compared to the average volatility over the last 10 periods. There is a good possibility that there will be an increase in volatility along with sharp price fluctuations in the near future. Our volume indicators reflect volume flowing into and out of FB.O at a relatively equal pace (neutral). Our trend forecasting oscillators are currently bullish on FB.O and have had this outlook for the last 13 periods.